Cultural (in)visibility and identity dissonance: Queer Iranian-American women and their negotiation of existence

ABSTRACT

This qualitative study explores the narratives of 12, first-generation, queer, Iranian-American women to understand (a) how Iranian cultural, familial, and relational discourses influence feelings of “belonging” for queer Iranian-American women, and (b) how queer Iranian-American women cope with the challenges of being both LGBTQ and Iranian-American. Online interviews were analyzed using grounded theory analysis, revealing that queer Iranian-American women experience feelings of cultural isolation as a result of the homosexual identity delegitimization that is often perpetuated within the Iranian community. Participants cope by creating cultural distance between themselves and the Iranian community when they experience this isolation.

KEYWORDS:

• Queer
• intersectionality
• cultural invisibility
• Iranian-American
• family

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank Dr. Bernadette Calafell, Dr. Richie Hao, and the JIIC reviewers for their support and recommendations. We would especially like to thank the brave women who trusted us with their stories and so generously shared their experiences. You are not invisible.